Thursday, July 30, 2015

Hero on Horseback

This year’s Santa Barbara 100-Mile Endurance Race saw a unique display of valiance in John Parke, a hero atop the back of steed Remington, whose deft riding through the Santa Ynez Mountains during the weekend of July 10 saved the lives of two race participants.

Parke, a regional director for the American Endurance Ride Conference (AERC), volunteered himself and his 27-year-old Icelandic pony as trail sweepers for their fifth consecutive race. He and Remington rode through parts of the trail with no vehicle access to ensure the runners made it safely through the course from where they set out on Friday at 6 p.m. to the finish, which they were expected to reach by 6 a.m. on Sunday...